First, thank you for taking the time. I have a 2011 2.0T, AWD with 75k miles. It used to be my daily driver but the last two years it is mostly garaged in the Colorado mountains (we live in a different state now) and driven a month in the summer and a month in the winter.

I have kept up with regular maintenance. Last year I had my first major issue with the car jerking and then coming to a stop. Had it towed and an Audi dealer determined there were spark plug issues, replaced a few and all seemed fine. The same thing just happened a few weeks ago and I was able to barely hobble into an Audi service center in Denver. They said the main issue was with 3 ignition coils that sat a little higher than the others so they "pushed them down" and retested with no misfires. They believe that issue is resolved and provided the list of recommendations below. Hope to get thoughts on what is needed and what can wait. My goal is to not get stuck on I-70 again and invest what is needed to get many more years out of the car which has been great up until recently.

Video of inspection (hard to hear when the engine is running but he turns it off half way through):
inspection.mov


My thoughts on each:

G. Remove Battery and Replace

• Fortunately I had evidence the battery was less than 4 years old so they are replacing under warranty.

H. Replace Alternator/Generator Pully with Serpentine belt

• Shown toward the end of the video. I have read DIY articles on replacing this but I'm not ready to take this on myself. My options are to wait (I read 75k is about the time to replace it which would be now) or have them do it. If the DIY is simple for someone with basic skills and takes 5 min I wonder why they charge so much.

F. Cam Ladder Reseal

• I had my local Atlanta Euro service (not Audi service center) recommend this same thing a few years ago since my engine has always had oil issues and had a similar cost estimate. I have to drive around with oil in the trunk and fill up a quart every month or so when I drive it. If that's all I need to do I can live with it but seems some of the seeping could be causing other issues.

A. Mount and Balance 4 tires & B. 4 Wheel Alignment

• Hold off for now. I'll get this done whenever it's time to put on new tires. Seems like a few more miles on them if the rears are at 4/5 and fronts are at 6. I do drive in snow and heavy gravel a lot so want to make sure I don't wait too long. Not sure how much longer I could wait.

C. Brake Fluid

• Hold off for now. Seems like it can wait but welcome corrections. Not sure how much longer I could wait.

D. Coolant Service

• Hold off for now. Seems like it can wait but welcome corrections. Not sure how much longer I could wait.

E. Suspension Control Arm Brushings

• Hold off for now. Seems like it can wait but welcome corrections. Not sure how much longer I could wait.

If I do H. and F. I'm looking at about $4k in maintenance after their general inspection costs I have already accepted. I know it's hard to say, but after replacing tires at some point I'm wondering if I get another 20k+ miles out of the car without other major maintenance items

Sincerely appreciate any guidance on what I can hold off on, for how long, and what I absolutely should do.

Thank you.

 

Mileage is always a factor when making these decisions - what is the mileage?

Brake Fluid is recommended to be flushed every 2 years regardless of mileage since it absorbs moisture and will corrode internal components causing seals to prematurely fail, etc.

 

Thank you for taking the time! The vehicle has 75,000 miles on it. Appreciate any additional guidance.

 

Crux, welcome to the forums! Your oil consumption rate, based on time, is mostly meaningless. Do you travel 500 miles in a month or 5,000 miles in a month.

Get someone to measure the timing chain stretch for you. That will provide another critical data point for you. IMO, a MY2011 car is kind of like a ticking time bomb and needed repairs could easily and quickly exceed the value of the vehicle where it sits today.

 

Sincerely appreciate the response. I travel about 500 miles before the notification comes up to add a quart. For example, I had an oil change, drove it 200 miles from Denver to the mountains, drove it just around town for the month, and then the notification came up.

I asked about chain stretch measurement and they responded, "The timing can be measured but we didn't have any cam over/under advanced codes so I'd say it's safe to say the timing is still good."

I agree it's a question of best investment. If I can spend $5k now and, with minimal maintenance over the next 5 years, hold the bomb from exploding I would consider it a huge win. If it's likely there will be high costs again within the next 5 years it would be smarter to try to get $7k for the Audi, take that same $5k I would drop into it for repair, and spend $12k on a used 4Runner. The latter option is more work to do all while out of state for a car that's not used very often so I'm leaning toward investing further in the Q5 unless advice here suggests otherwise.

Thank you all!

 

OK, seems like you are on top of many of the worries with this engine. I'd still want to know the chain stretch value so it can be monitored over time. It can get pretty bad before symptoms and the CEL appear.

We have 150k miles on our 2015 Q5 4 cylinder. The stretch has been holding at -5.6 degrees since I started changing the oil more often. Watching that value closely.

I've found a slowing of my oil consumption based upon oil brands. I've found a minor improvement with Quaker State 5W40 Euro (502.00) oil and continue to use that one. I've tried a bunch of different oils.

Good luck.

 

Thank you so much. I'll get the measurement for my records. Mind sharing your suggestion for what is a priority vs what can wait? So far from feedback it seems:

Do:

• Battery replace (free)
• Brake fluid

Unsure

• Serpentine belt
• Cam ladder reseal
• Coolant
• Control arm brushings

Wait

• Mount, balance, 4 wheel alignment (wait until next visit for all new tires)

 

......

 

Thanks a ton!

I'm getting the battery, brake fluid and serpentine belt done.

Audi service said the cam ladder reseal could be done later since the engine is "seeping" and not "leaking." They also said the control arm brushings can wait since they are not yet cracked or torn. Said the tires have another 15k or so on them. Also agreed no need to replace coolant.

So all in will be about $1500 for the diagnostics, new battery (warranty) reinstalling 3 ignition coils, brake fluid, and serpentine belt. Hope that keeps the ticking time bomb at bay another 15k miles and 3-5 years.

Sincerely appreciate all of the advice here - in this thread and from all of my searches.

 

Shop does not sound knowledgeable on this engine. You need to measure the stretch and I don't understand why they wouldn't do it since it only takes a minute. This engine can bend valves before it codes.

Brake fluid is hygroscopic so they should measure the moisture content to know when it should be replaced (2%).